not an arbiter of taste

Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Tomato tart à la Régalade

The heirloom tomatoes at Ella Bella farm stand at the farmer's market last Saturday were so unbelievably gorgeous that I decided to make a tomato tart for a picnic last Saturday in Golden Gate Park. The recipe came from 125 recettes de La Régalade by Yves Camdeborde.

I have wanted to make this tart since I got the book. How could you resist a tart dough comprising of equal amount parmigiano cheese, butter, and flour? I mean, that's such an irresistible indulgence.

I made two versions in one day, as I wanted to test this brand new recipe. I used pastry flour for the first version, and pretty much followed the recipe exactly. The resulting product was not ideal. The tart dough was a little loose, probably due to not enough gluten from the pastry flour. It was also ever so slightly soggy, probably because I didn't let the tomato rest long enough.

For the second one, I used regular all purpose flour, blind-baked the tart (about 10 minutes), and roasted the tomato slices for 10 minutes at 300F. Then the tart was reassembled, and in it went to the oven for another 10 minutes. It was a little bit of a challenge getting the soft roasted tomato slices to go neatly on top of the tart, but I managed. The resulting tart was better than the first one, the dough wasn't as loose, and the bottom of the tart was only a teeny bit wet—but that could have largely been due to the change in the type of flour.. I'm not sure if the difference was worth the pain however. So I ended up with a recipe that was pretty much the same as the one I started out with.

For the dough:
In a large bowl, work the cheese, flour, and butter together until forming a dough, using your finger tips or a pastry cutter. Knead it a few times until smooth. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least a half hour.

For the tomatoes:
Slice all the tomatoes thinly, 2-3 mm. thick, and arrange on two baking sheets, sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Let stand for at least a half hour to get rid of some water from the tomatoes.

To finish:
Roll out the dough to fit 12 inch tart pan or into six individual rounds.
Arrange the tomato slices neatly on the tart, be sure to dry each slice well with paper towel.
Bake in a preheated 350 F (180 c.) oven for 15 minutes for the large tart, or 10 minutes if you have smaller rounds.
Let cool to lukewarm before unmolding.
Pour excellent olive oil over the tart immediately before serving.

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Tomato tart à la Régalade

The heirloom tomatoes at Ella Bella farm stand at the farmer's market last Saturday were so unbelievably gorgeous that I decided to make a tomato tart for a picnic last Saturday in Golden Gate Park. The recipe came from 125 recettes de La Régalade by Yves Camdeborde.

I have wanted to make this tart since I got the book. How could you resist a tart dough comprising of equal amount parmigiano cheese, butter, and flour? I mean, that's such an irresistible indulgence.

I made two versions in one day, as I wanted to test this brand new recipe. I used pastry flour for the first version, and pretty much followed the recipe exactly. The resulting product was not ideal. The tart dough was a little loose, probably due to not enough gluten from the pastry flour. It was also ever so slightly soggy, probably because I didn't let the tomato rest long enough.

For the second one, I used regular all purpose flour, blind-baked the tart (about 10 minutes), and roasted the tomato slices for 10 minutes at 300F. Then the tart was reassembled, and in it went to the oven for another 10 minutes. It was a little bit of a challenge getting the soft roasted tomato slices to go neatly on top of the tart, but I managed. The resulting tart was better than the first one, the dough wasn't as loose, and the bottom of the tart was only a teeny bit wet—but that could have largely been due to the change in the type of flour.. I'm not sure if the difference was worth the pain however. So I ended up with a recipe that was pretty much the same as the one I started out with.